(BPT) - You faithfully recycle at home, use a refillable BPA-free water bottle and charge your smartphone with a solar recharger. When it’s time to choose wedding favors for your own nuptials, or a gift for someone else’s wedding, do you find environmental awareness taking a backseat to style? It doesn’t have to.

It’s possible to give wedding favors and gifts that are natural, responsible and useful – items that everyone can feel good about giving and receiving. Kitchen-related products commonly appear on many wedding registry lists, and creative couples often distribute small pieces of kitchen ware as favors to their guests. For gifts that are sustainable, creative and practical, look beyond the pots, pans and dishes to the food itself.

Food-inspired wedding gifts

Many newly married couples will be setting up their homes together for the first time. They may already have the basics, but you can help them round out their kitchen with some useful utensils they may not have realized they need.

For example, every cook can benefit from a well-stocked spice rack. Purchase an attractive spice rack and fill it with sustainably sourced, natural spices like those from Frontier Co-op. Choose basic spices like versatile organic basil, cinnamon and garlic, then add in some exotic options such as garam masala (an all-purpose Indian spice), Himalayan pink salt or black sesame seed.

Making pizza at home can be a fun, easy meal for busy newlyweds. Put together a pizza-making kit, complete with a quality pizza cutter, a pizza stone for baking, a wedge of Parmesan, some baking yeast, and pizza seasonings like oregano, basil and garlic powder. Place everything in a basket and complete the gift with a book of pizza recipes.

Gardening is a popular activity, and if your newlywed friends will be trying their hand at it, they may find themselves with lots of leftover produce. Giving canning supplies as a wedding gift can be a great way to encourage their love of growing their own produce, while helping ensure nothing goes to waste. Fill a canning pot with supplies like canning funnels and jars, and canning and pickling spices like bay leaves, peppercorns, celery seed, cumin, dill, mustard and salt, or even a Pickling Spice Blend.

Wedding favors they’ll savor

If you’re planning your own wedding, food favors can excite guests and fulfill your desire to be eco-friendly and creative.

Tea is a soothing and sophisticated beverage that can make a great wedding favor. Simply purchase heart-shaped tea infusers and fill them with a variety of loose teas, such as chamomile, peppermint, Darjeeling, Earl Grey, or black, green or white teas. Accent the favor with a ribbon in your wedding colors.

Pepper is a ubiquitous seasoning in numerous cuisines from around the world. For a useful, welcome wedding favor that will expand guest’s culinary knowledge, why not give different gourmet peppers of the world? Peppercorns come in a variety of shades and heat levels – and even shapes! Present guests with a small peppermill and a selection of gourmet peppercorns.

Grilling is a great American past-time. If your wedding will take place in spring or summer, grilling spices and seasoning blends can be a fun wedding favor that will turn into your guest’s go-to item when they grill. Look for a variety of seasonings that work with steaks, fish, fowl and even vegetables. Choose organic seasonings from purveyors like Frontier Co-Op, which practices sustainable sourcing, so that you know you’re giving guests quality, organic seasonings.

Organic, sustainably sourced food gifts can be creative, fun and useful wedding favors and gifts – and a great way to show Mother Nature some love while you’re celebrating your own love story. To learn more about sustainably sourced spices and seasonings, visit www.frontiercoop.com.

(BPT) - While your wedding should be the happiest day of your life, it can also be the happiest day for your kitchen. With a well-planned registry, you’ll be enjoying the fun, creativity and bonding of cooking together at home for years to come — from leisurely weekend breakfasts to romantic dinners and toasts to cap off the day.

A wedding registry should reflect how you really live. Not everyone focuses their social life on formal dinner parties with the kind of fine china, silverware and crystal found on traditional wedding gift lists. Today’s registries reflect current lifestyles with new twists and trends.

“Wedding registries are trending toward more casual, hip and high-tech kitchenware, such as nonstick woks instead of chafing dishes and iced tea makers instead of tea pots,” says Peter Giannetti, editor-in-chief of HomeWorld Business. “Also, registries are not as bride-centric as they used to be. With both brides and grooms involved, gifts such as high-tech coffee centers and growlers for craft beer are becoming more popular.”

Selecting gifts at a variety of price points is both good etiquette and good strategy. Big-ticket items give guests the opportunity for a grand gesture, and they also make great group gifts. Be sure to include moderately priced items that are appealing and distinctive, so that everyone can feel good about what they give. For many, it is more satisfying to give something that’s special and specific, rather than one small piece for a set.

On-trend wedding registry gift ideas

1. The growler is becoming a new must-have for those who love locally brewed craft beer, while also wanting to lead eco-friendly lifestyles that avoid the waste of excess disposable packaging. Created for filling with craft beer, the Reduce Vacuum Growler features double wall insulation that protects the beverage for full flavor enjoyment at just the right temperature.

2. Teatime is now cool, because 85 percent of the tea consumed in America is iced, according to The Tea Association of the USA. One to consider is an iced tea maker that offers a fully customizable iced tea brewing experience from either loose tea or tea bags. The Capresso Iced Tea Maker lets you adjust to taste from regular to extra strong, and it brews into a beautiful 80-ounce glass pitcher.

3. Pepper and salt mills are focal points on the counter or the table, in addition to being everyday essentials. A unique choice that ties into popular décor trends is the Collection Antique from Peugeot, which combines iconic shapes with rustic aged beech wood. Designed and produced in France, these are keepsake mills with a lifetime warranty on the mechanisms.

4. The wok has evolved into a versatile everyday pan for quickly prepared meals with delicious, fresh ingredients. You should look for a high quality nonstick wok engineered to professional grade standards. The Kyocera 12.5-inch Nonstick Wok with Lid features an exclusive ceramic nonstick coating and can be used for braising, pan-frying, roasting, searing and stir-frying.

5. Coffee lovers appreciate a true bean-to-cup experience and who wouldn’t want a professional-style coffee bar in their own home? The JURA IMPRESSA C60 produces specialty coffee beverages in a flash. A high-performance conical burr grinder and fine foam technology for feather-like milk foam help make this machine the choice for happy couples who would rather sip their java at home versus the coffee shop.

Planning a wedding is one of the most exciting and potentially stressful things you'll ever do. Arranging for all the flowers, food, guests and music can turn even the most even-keeled bride into something from a horror film. Use these tips to prevent the beauty from transforming into a beast leading up to the big day.

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6 ways to beat your inner bridezilla80963101015/15/2015

(BPT) - Having fears on your wedding day is normal and many questions will run through your head; “Did I invite everyone?” “What if I trip in my heels?” “Am I forgetting something?” Out of all the questions you’ll ask yourself, “Am I being a bridezilla?” probably won’t be one of them.

Most brides don’t plan to let their inner bridezilla take over, but sometimes, underestimating how many common stressors exist when planning a wedding makes it hard to keep your cool. To keep your bridzilla from appearing, here are a few tips on how to avoid conflict, minimize risk and remove stress from your wedding planning process.

Stay a bride, without the “-zilla”

1. Be organized. Bridezillas usually hit their boiling point when things don’t go according to plan. Follow a budget and timeline to prevent as many surprises as possible.

2. Ask for help. Turn to your bridesmaids, that’s what they're there for. Utilize the different strengths that each person brings to the table. And don’t forget, many women in your family have been down this road before – they may have some great advice to share.

3. Keep your priorities in check. Before you lose your lid, ask yourself “Is this worth being so angry over?” Your big day is more than flowers and seating charts, it’s a celebration of love with your family and friends.

Prepare for the risky potential ahead

1. What if it rains on your parade? Don’t let unpredictable weather ruin your ceremony. Try to find a venue that will have a backup plan if a storm knocks on your big day’s door.

2. Your friends-brothers-cousins-girlfriend may end up coming. Do your best for an overall attendee list, but keep in mind, some who said they would attend might not, and on the other hand, you might end up with a few surprise guests.

Wedding planning can seem overwhelming at times, so make sure to allow yourself a “wedding free zone.” Make it a point to have days where you don’t talk about your wedding at all. By focusing on your daily routine throughout the process and allowing yourself time for rest and relaxation, you’ll keep that inner bridezilla sleeping soundly.